What is criminal procedure?
Criminal procedure is the set of steps carried out to investigate and determine whether a person has committed a crime and, if so, to impose a penalty.
Unlike other procedures (such as civil or administrative ones), criminal procedure deals with conduct that is considered particularly serious, as it attacks or seriously endangers highly relevant interests for society. Thus, homicides and murders violate life, fraud harms property, driving under the influence of alcohol can endanger road safety, etc.
The seriousness of these behaviours implies that the punishment is also severe. Therefore, only in criminal procedure can prison sentences be imposed, which are the most restrictive sanctions that a judge can impose in our society.
What stages does criminal procedure have?
When courts in a territory become aware of a fact committed within their jurisdiction that could constitute a crime, they must initiate (“institute”) the corresponding criminal procedure. This usually happens through a complaint or a formal charge submitted to the competent court. Once the procedure has started, it must go through three stages: the investigation phase, the intermediate phase, and the oral trial phase.
With the exception of minor offence proceedings, the first stage of criminal procedure is the investigation phase (or instruction). The main objective of this phase is to prepare the trial. To this end, actions will be carried out to ensure the safety of victims and their property, but above all to investigate the reported facts.
Once all actions to investigate the alleged criminal acts (investigative proceedings) have been carried out, the investigating judge must decide whether a trial should be held or whether the case should be dismissed (“closed”).
If it is decided to continue with the proceedings, the intermediate phase will begin (also with the exception of minor offence proceedings). In this phase, the prosecution wishing to request a conviction must submit its provisional submissions (also known as the indictment). This is a document with a form and content defined by law, which must include, among other things, the facts considered criminal, the requested sentence, and the evidence deemed necessary for the trial. After this, the defence will have the opportunity to submit its own provisional submissions, which follow the same format as those of the prosecution.
The final stage of the procedure is the oral trial. This hearing always takes place in the presence of at least a judge, who will examine the admitted evidence and hear the arguments presented by the parties. Once completed, the trial is considered “ready for judgment”, which will be drafted by the judge in the following days (or months).
The judgment will determine whether the accused are acquitted or convicted. In any case, both the defence and the prosecution may appeal the judgment if they do not agree with its content.
